Golf club



` Fehn, 194i. J. B. DicKscN Erm.

GOLF CLUB Filed May 51, 1938 ATTORNEY Patented Feb. 11, 1941 GOLF CLUBJohn B. Dickson, Northampton, and Anthony Couture, Springfield, Spalding& Bros. Inc poration of Delaware Mass., assignors to A. G. New York, N.Y., a cor- Appiication May 31, 193s, serial No. 210,882

1 Claim.

This invention relates to golf clubs.

It is an object of the invention to provide a golf club having a metalshaft and a metal head, popularly known as an iron, which because of itsnovel construction is less liable to break and may be used with greatersuccess and with less skill than the metal-shafted irons now in generaluse.

In many metal-shafted irons now in general use there is a large bulge atthe point where the shaft enters the hosel of the club head. The largebulge renders it extremely difficult to sight down the shaft andproperly line up the face of the club with the ball.

A feature of the present invention, therefore, resides in providing agolf club in which there is no bulge at the point where the shaft entersthe hosel and in which there is a substantially uniform, continuous andstraight-line taper of the hosel from the club head to the upper end ofthe hosel, whereby there is achieved an uninterrupted sighting line downthe shaft to the face of the club.

Because of the large, bulging and heavy hosel on many of the irons nowin general use, and the resulting concentration of weight near the heelof the club head, the sweet spot on the face of the club head, that is,the spot on the face where the ball may be hit with maximum results andwith a minimum of shock to the player, is of very limited extent. Only aplayer of exceptional skill, therefore, is able to obtain a good hitwith any degree of regularity.

With the presentinvention the hosel is either substantially reduced insize and Weight or eliminated altogether, and the weight is shifted tothe blade. This change in the distribution of weight constitutes animportant feature of the invention in that it serves to increase theuseful extent of the sweet spot and to move it away from the heel of theclub, and also tends to facilitate anv even, smooth swing of the clubhead.

Moreover, by substantially reducing or eliminating entirely the hoselthe center of percussion of the club is shifted laterally away from theheel of the club head and is also shifted downwardly. This shifting ofthe center of percussionbrings the latter closer to the geometricalcenter or normal impact area of the face of the club head and,therefore, is of the utmost importance.

The actual center of percussion of a golf club which is dened in Marks'Handbook as the point at which a suspended body may be struck withoutcausing any pressure on the axis passing through the point ofsuspension, is in the air above the face of the club. Hence, in actualpractice a player when grasping the club grip of a and swinging thelatter about a center corresponding to the wrist or to the Waggle point,hits below the center of percussion. Because of this fact the impactforce does cause pressure on the -hands and wrists of the player andtends to rotate the club as a whole about a horizontal axis through thecenter of percussion in such a direction that the head of the club tendsto move backward and the grip forward against the hands of the player.Some of the energy in the descending club, therefore, goes into rotatingthe club instead of propelling the ball.

Accordingly, it will be appreciated that the shorter the distance fromthe center of percussion to the normal impact area of the face of theclub, the less the moment of impact reaction tending to rotate the clubabout the center of percussion, and the less the energy dissipated inovercoming the moment of impact reaction instead of driving the ball.

It, therefore, follows that with the same stroke, a ball will bepropelled farther with a club moved closer to tially reducing orpreferably placing or its equivalent in the blade.

In addition to serving as a means in which the center of percussion hasbeen the face of the club by substaneliminating the hosel and by theremoved weight thereof for minimizing the adverse tendency of the clubto rotate about a horizontal axis through the center of percussion, thesubstantial reduction or elimination of the hosel serves as a means forminimizing the adverse tendency of the club to rotat-eabout anapproximating vertical line passing diagonally across the face of theconvenience be called the The line of percussion club, which line mayfor line of percussion.

is determined by the distribution of weight in the golf club taken as awhole with relation to the grip portion of the club. In the conventionalclub with a relatively large hosel the line of percussion lies adjacentthe heel of the club face and is spaced appreciably from This line ofpercussion vthe geometrical center of the club face.

is such that whereas any striking of the ball on either side of the linedoes tend to produce a rotation of the club about the line, any strikingof the ball on the line does not tend to produce this adverse rotationof the club.

Because of the fact that the average player is Aunable to hit toward theheel or toward the toe at will, his natural tendency, in hisuncertaincy, geometrical center of cordingly, with the conventionallarg-e and his logical course, is to aim for the the face of the club.Ac-

hosel club.

when a hit is made at the geometrical center there is a tendency for themoment of impact reaction about the line of percussion to rotate theclub. Hence, here again, energy is lost and sweetness of feel islessened by the grip tending to rotate in the players hands when the hitis not on the line of percussion.

In a club embodying the present invention of shifting the center ofpercussion outwardly from the heel end of the club, as by substantiallyreducing or eliminating the hosel, the redistribution of weight is suchthat the line of percussion is moved from the heel of the club andtoward the geometrical center of. the c1-ub face. Thus when a playerswings a club embodying the present invention in the normal way so as tohit the ball at or closely adjacent the geometrical center of the clubface, the hit will be either on the line of percussion or substantiallycloser tothe line of percussion than would be the case if a conventionalclub having a relatively large hosel were being used.

Because of this shifting of the line of percussion from the heel andtoward the geometrical center of the club face, therefore, the adversetendency of the club to rotate about the line of percussion isminimized, the possibility of wasted energy due to the turning of theclub in the players hands minimized, sweetness of feel is increased, andaccuracy of the drive materially aided.

It is apparent, therefore, that that feature of the invention whichresides in shifting the center of percussion closer to the geometricalcenter of the face of the club is of the utmost importance and. makes itpossible for the average player and even the highly skilled player toobtain greater distance and more accuracy in his shots with less shockupon his hands.

To complement the advantageous effects produced by substantiallyreducing or eliminating the hosel, weight taken from the hosel, and ifdesired additional weight, is preferably addedA to the fianged sole ofthe club. This weight is so placed that it not only tends to facilitatean even, smooth swing but also serves to shift the center of percussioncloser tothe geometrical center of the face of the club.

One of the -primary objections to steel-shafted golf clubs is the factthat there is a tendency for the shaft to break at or adjacent the pointwhere it enters the hosel. This is caused by the normally abrupt changefrom the relatively rigid hosel to the relatively yielding and flexiblemetal tube that forms the club shaft. When a ball is hit, this abruptchange from the rigid hosel to the relatively yielding and flexiblemetal shaft results in a concentration of the shaft vibrations in alocalized area in the shaft at the upper end of the hosel with anattendant breakdown of the metallic structure of the shaft at thatpoint. This results in an eventual breaking of the shaft.

It is, therefore, an object of this invention to provide a golf club,and in particular a metalshafted iron, in which this tendency of themetal-shafted golf clubs to break is overcome.

To overcome this tendency, there is provided as a feature of thisinvention a means for distributing the vibrations of the shaft over alarger area.

One o-f the means for thus distributing the shaft vibrations comprisesthe forming of the hosel in the form of a thin sleeve with a gradualtaper toward its upper end so that the mass of metal in the hoselbecomes progressively less as it extends upwardly on the shaft. Withsuch a construction, therefore, there is no sudden change from anunyielding hosel to the relatively yielding and flexible shaft and thevibrations are dispersed over a relatively large area of the shaft andof the hosel itself. Such a construction, by distributing the vibrationsin the shaftand making possible an absorption of the vibrations by thehosel, not only overcomes the tendency of the shaft to break, but alsoby leveling off the intensity of the vibrations materially reduces theshock on the hands of the player at the moment the club hits the ball.

Anotherl of the means for thus diminishing and distributingvthe shaftvibrations comprises the 'provision of a plug or core of distortable,resilient, shock-absorbing material, such as rubbei', inserted in thetubular metal shaft and eX- tending from within the socket or hosel onthe club head to a point above the upper end of the socket or hosel.This rubber plug dampens any localized vibrations that may be set up inthe shaft at the point where it enters the socket or hosel on the clubhead and tends to distribute these vibrations over a relatively largearea. As in the case of the tapered hosel, this rubber plug by dampeningand distributing the shaft vibrations overcomes the tendency of themetal shaft to break due to the concentration of vibrations in alocalized area, and also reduces the resulting shock on the hands of theplayer at the moment the club head hits the ball.

Other objects and features will hereinafter appear.

In the drawing:

Figure 1 is a fragmentary side view of a golf club embodying theinvention.

Fig. 2 is a View similar to Fig. 1 but partially in section.

Fig. 3 is an exploded view showing the shaft and the club head-inaligned b-ut disassociated relation, certain of the parts being shown insection to more clearly illustrate the invention.

Fig. 4 is an end View of the club head embodying the present invention.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary side View showing another form of the presentinvention.

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary view, partially in section, showing a modiedform of the present invention.

Before describing the present improvements and mode of operation thereofin detail it should be understood that the invention is not limited tothe details of construction and arrangement of parts shown in theaccompanying drawing, which are merely illustrative of the presentpreferred embodiments, since the invention is capable of otherembodiments, and the phraseology employed is for the purpose ofdescription and not of limitation.

Referring more particularly to the drawing, and first to Figs. 1 to 4,there is shown a golf club I having a metal head II from which eX- tendsupwardly an integral hosel I2 having a shaft-receiving socket I3therein. As is conventional, the club head includes a blade II' with aface I4, a toe lI and a heel I6 from which extends a neck portion ITwhich joins the blade of the club to the hosel.

Of particular importance, however, the hosel I2 of the club is providedwith a substantially uniform, continuous and straight-line taper I8 fromthe neck I'I` of the club to the upper end of the hosel. The hosel I3,therefore, is in the form of a thin tapering sleeve and at its upperplayer, in the normal end the walls I9 have a thickness substantiallythe same as those of the tubular metal shaft 20. Asseen most clearly inFigs. 2 and 3, this continuous taper reduces the weight of the hosel andcauses the mass of metal in the hosel to become progressively less andless as itv extends upwardly. 1 e

-When the tubular metal shaft 20 is inserted in the socket I3 of thehosel I2, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, there is no abrupt bulge at thepoint where the shaft enters the hosel. On the contrary, there is a verygradual uniform and straight-line taper youtwardly from the upper end ofthe khosel to the neck of the club. Such a construction by eliminatingany bulge between the upper and grip end of the shaft and the neck ofthe club gives a player an uninterrupted sighting line down the shaftlto the face of the club and thus makes it a very simple matter toproperly line up the face of the club with the ball. Failure to properlyline up the face of the club with the ball not only causes the player toslice or hook the ball but also causes the player to hit the ball in aline which is angularly disposed relative to the line along which heassumes he is aiming.

Also ofimportance, by forming the hosel I2 in the form of a thintapering sleeve, the hosel is rendered progressively less rigid and moreyielding as it approaches its upper end. Thus, with the presentinvention the relatively yielding and flexible tubular metal shaft 20 isnot uniformly and rigidly supported throughout the hosel and thenabruptly left totally unsupported. On the contrary, by making the wallsof the hosel progressively thinner the hosel itself becomesprogressively less rigid and more yielding so. that any shocktransmitted from the head of the club is not localized at the pointwhere the shaft enters the hosel, but is gradually distributedk over arelatively large area of the shaft and also absorbed by the hoselitself.

This distribution of the shock dampens'the vibrations set up in the clubshaft and by preventing a localization of the vibrations prevents thebreakdown of the metallic structure of the shaft which results in aneventual breaking or splitting of the shaft. Also, this dampen-ing ofthe shaft vibrations tends to minimize any shock that might otherwise betransmitted to the hands cf the player. l

Moreover, and of particular importance, by tapering the hosel andthereby reducing the mass of metal therein the center of percussion ofthe golf club, which is determined by the'distribution of weightrelative to the grip of the club or the waggle point, is shiftedlaterally relatively to the heel I6 and also downwardly. This moves thecenter of percussion closer vto the geometrical center of the club faceand thus not only serves to locate the sweet spot, that is the spot on aclub face where the ball may be hit with maximum results and withminimum shock to-the the geometrical center of the club face, but alsoserves to increase the effectiveness of the club when the ball is hit onthe sweet spot.

This shifting of the center of percussion is shown diagrammatically inFig. 3. There it is seen, by way of illustration, that the center ofpercussion is moved from a point at C to a point at C spaced outward anddownward relative thereto. This diagram thus shows in a graphic mannerhow, by the present invention, the moment of impact reaction about ahorihitting area at or adjacent sole of the blade there will be lazontal linepassing vthrough the center'of percussion isfsubstantially'reduced to thus reduce the amount of energy dissipated' in overcomingthis adverse moment of reaction.

Also, in Fig. 3 it is showndiagrammatically that with theconventionalgolf club having a relatively large hosel,'the line ofpercussion, is

-near the heel of the club, as on the line L'-L.

This condition results in the setting up of an appreciable turningmoment about the line L-L when the ball is hit at the geometrical centerof the face of the club. Energy vthat might otherwise be .utilized inpropelling the ball must be used in resisting the tendency of the clubto rotate about'the approximately vertical line that constitutes theline of percussion By shifting the center of percussion laterally awayfrom the hosel of the club the line of percussion is moved away from theheel and toward the geometrical center of the face of the club. In theideal condition the line of percussion would pass through thegeometrical center of the face 'of the club, as on the line L-L. Undersuch a condition a ball hit at the geometrical center of the club facewould cause no adverse moment of reaction about the line of percussion.Hence, any appreciable movement of the line of percussion away from theheel and toward the geometrical center of the club face willsubstantially increase the effective energy that may be used inpropelling the ball.

With a club embodying the present invention, therefore, it is seen thatby substantially reducing the weight of the hosel and thus shifting thecenter of percussion away from the hosel and downwardly toward thenormal point of impact at the geometrical center of the club face, aball, with the same stroke, may be hlt a greater distance and withgreater accuracy than with a lconventional club vhaving a large hosel.

. To further increase the advantageous effects produced .by reducing thesize of the hosel, there is preferably formed an enlarged flanged sole2| on the blade, see Fig. 4, so proportioned and located that the centerof percussion is moved still closer to the geometricalcenter of theclubface. This enlarged flanged sole may be added tothe club without anysubstantial variation in the total weight of the club, because ineffect, the weight taken from the hosel is redistributed to the blade.

In addition to serving as a means forrmore advantageously locating thecenter of percussion, the enlarged anged sole 2| servesI also tofacilitate an even and -smooth swing of the club.

vIt will be appreciatedtherefore, that a club constructed in accordancewith the teachings of the present invention may be used with very fairsuccess by a player even though he may not be highly skilled. This isdue in part to the fact that because of vthe advantageous uninterruptedsighting line downthe club shaft, the player may -easily and properlylineup the face of the club with the ball and on the line on whichv theball 65 is to be hit, in part to the fact that the useful extent ofthe-sweet spot is enlarged and, is moved more 'toward the center of thefacewhere the ball would naturally be hit, in part to the fact that byshifting the center of percussion closer to the geometrical center lofthe club face the energy needed to resist any adverse rotation of theyclub is substantially reduced, and in part to the fact that because ofthe increased-weight at the tendency for the club head to move inauniforni andaligned direction before, during and immediately after theclub head hits the ball.

For achieving a. simple and particularly advantageous connection betweenthe metal shaft and hosel, helical threads 22 are preferably formed atthe lower end of the shaft. soldered and other type connections may alsobe used. These threads 22 engage with cooperating threads 23 formed inthe hosel socket I3 and preferably terminating below the upper end ofthe socket and above the lower end of the socket. With thisconstruction, when the shaft is inserted in the hosel and turned so thatthe threads pull the shaft progressively down into the socket the lowerend of the shaft is jammed onto the lower unthreaded portion of thesocket and squeezed so as to be securely held in place. If desired, thesocket I3 may be formed, as shown in Fig. 5, to extend downwardly nearlyto the bottom of the head. This further reduces the weight at the heelof the club and serves to aid in shifting the center of percussion andline of percussion toward the geometrical center of the club face.

If preferred, and as shown most clearly in Figs. 2 and 3, there may beutilized a second means for distributing the shaft vibrations inaddition to the means provided by forming the hosel progressively lessrigid and more yielding as it approaches its upper end. lThis secondarymeans comprises a plug or core 24 of distortable, resilient,shockabsorbing material, such as rubber, inserted in the lower portionof the tubular metal shaft and extending from within the socket I3 to apoint above the upper end of the socket. This rubber plug dampens anylocalized vibrations that may be set up in the shaft adjacent the upperend of the hosel I 2 and distributes the same over a relatively largerarea of the shaft. Also, in addition to preventing the breakage oftheclub shaft because of a breakdown of -the metallic structure due tointense localized vibrations, the rubber plug 24 serves as a cushion toprevent the transmittal of impact shock from the club head I I to thehands of the player.

Moreover, the rubber plug 24 may further serve to yieldingly maintainthe lower end of the shaft in rm threaded relation with the threads inthe socket. The indentations and projections in the rubber plugaccommodating the helical threads formed on the shaft, cooperate withthese threads in maintaining the rubber plug in fixed positionlongitudinally of the shaft.

To give the club a more finished appearance a small ring 25 of Celluloidor other material, may be placed around the club shaft adjacent theupper end of the hosel. Also, the shaft may be left with a metallic faceor covered with Celluloid or other materials.

In Fig. 6 a modified form of the invention is shown. As in the form rstdescribed it embodies a construction which facilitates a proper liningup of the face of the club head; which properly locates and increasesthe extent of the sweet spot; which shifts the center of percussion andthe line of percussion closer to the geometrical center of the clubface; which dampens and distributes the shaft vibrations; and whichfacilitatesan aligned and uniform swing of the clubI head.

This modified club 25 differs from the form rst described in thecomplete elimination of the hosel and in the formation of ashaft-receiving socket I3 in a bulge or neck I'I on the heel end of the-club head. This complete elimination of the hosel, like the provisionof a tapered hosel of reduced weight in the club shown in Figs. lthrough 4, serves to shift the center of percussion and the line `ofpercussion closer to the geometrical center of the Iclub face and tothereby increase the efficiency of the club and the useful extent of thesweet spot.

As in the case of the club I0 first described, this modified cluby 25is, preferably, provided with an enlargedanged sole on the back of theclub head, proportioned and located in the same position as the enlargedanged sole 2I shown in Fig. 4, for the purpose of further shifting thecenter of percussion and the line of percussion toward the geometricalcenter of the vclub face and for facilitating an even and smooth swingof the club head.

To securely connect the shaft with the club head there is provided inthe socket I3', which ex`A tends nearly to the bottom of the club head,a threaded section Z3 preferably spacedY from both the top and thebottom of the socket. When the tubular metal shaft 20 is inserted in thesocket the cooperating threads 22 and 23' on the shaft and in the socketdraw the shaft downwardly and thus cause the shaft to jam against theunthreaded portions of the socket and thus firmly secure the shaftrelative to the club head.

With the shaft thus secured in the head it is seen that there is, as inthe form first described,

an uninterrupted sighting line down the shaft to the face of the club;This follows because of the complete elimination of the hosel and of anybulge that might have been caused thereby.

If desired, to further improve the sighting line and to give the club amore finished appearance a tapering thimble 26 of enamel, Celluloid orsimilar lightweight material may be inserted on the shaft above thesocket I3.

To dampen any vibrations that might be set up in the shaft by the impactof the club head with the ball and to distribute this vibration over arelatively large area, a plug or core 24 of rubber or the like, may beinserted in the lower portion of the tubular shaft so as to extend fromwithin the socket I3 23' to a lpoint appreciably above the upper end ofthe socket. As with the plug 24 described in connection with Figs. 1through 4, the plug 24 by dampening, absorbing and distributing theshock and vibrations, tense localized strains and stresses at the pointwhere the shaft 20 enters the socket I3', and also materially reducesany shock or vibration that may reach the hands of a player.

As shown in Fig. 5 the same broad inventive concept ofshifting thecenter of percussion and the line of percussion closer to thegeometrical center and normal impact point of the club face as embodiedin the two forms of golf cluby heretofore described, may be embodied ina third form of golf club 21. 'I'his result is accomplished in themodified golf club 21 as in the club I0 shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3, bydecreasing the size and weight of the hosel. However, instead `ofproviding a hosel which may extend upwardly substantially theY sameextent as hosels in the usual and conventional golf clubs, this modifiedclub 2l embodies a hosel 28 which is substantially shorter than thehosel of a conventional golf club. To further reduce its weight and tosubstantially eliminate any sight interfering bulge, the hosel 28preferably, and as shown, is formed with a substantially uniform,continuous and straight line taper 29 from the neck 30 of the club tothe upper end of the hosel.

and contiguous the threads 22 and prevents the building up of innenlarged flanged sole such as shown in Fig. 4 is also preferablyprovided on this modified club 21 to aid in shifting the center ofpercussion toward the geometrical center of the club face and inincreasing the smoothness and evenness of the swing.

For connecting the shaft 20 to the head of the modif-led club therepreferably is provided in the hosel 28 a socket 3| which, like thesocket I3 in the vmodiied club 25, extends nearly to the bottom of theclub head. This extension of the socket, by reducing the mass of metalat the heel end of the club, serves to further shift the center ofpercussion and the line of percussio toward the geometrical center ofthe club face I4 To complete the connection between the shaft 20 and theclub head there is preferably formed in the socket 3| and spaceddownwardly from the upper end of the hosel, a threaded section 32 whichcooperates with the threads 22 on shaft 20 `to hold the latter securelyrelative to the head.

A tapering collar or sleeve 33 of Celluloid or other lightweightmaterial may be advantageous- 1y inserted on the shaft 20 immediatelyabove the hosel so as to improve the sighting line down the shaft to theface I4 of the club and to provide a more nished appearance to the club.

In order to dampen any vibration that might be set up in the shaft whenthe ball is hit, a plug or core 34 of rubber-or the like, similar to theplugs 24 and 24', may be advantageously inserted in the lower portion ofthe shaft so as to extend from within the socket 3l and contiguous thethreads 22 and 32 to a point appreciably above the upper end of thesocket. By dampening, absonbing and distributing the shock andvibrations the plug 34 prevents the building up of intense localizedstrains and stresses at the point Where the shaft 20 enters the hosel28, and also serves to further reduce any shock or vibration that mightotherwise reach the hands of a player.

Variations and modifications may be made within the scope of thisinvention and portions of the improvements may be used without others.

Having thus described the invention what is claimed as new is:

A golf club comprising a metal head having a playing face, and having ashaft-receiving socket therein at the heel end thereof, said head beingformed to reduce the mass of metal yadjacent said socket; helicalthreads formed in said socket; a tubular metal shaft extending into saidsocket;

a rubber plug in said shaft and extending from a point adjacent thelower extremity of the shaft and within the socket to a point above saidsocket; and helical threads formed on the exterior and interior of theend portion of said shaft for respectively maintaining said shaft insaid socket and maintaining said plug in fixed position longitudinallyof said shaft.

JOHN B. DICKSON.

ANTHONY COUTURE.

